Irregular Spanish Verbs

It isn’t too long after starting to learn Spanish verb conjugation that a student encounters the Spanish past tenses. These Spanish past tenses are called the preterite and the imperfect and both are widely used and it is therefore extremely important to fully understand when to use each tense and how each is formed.

There are irregular Spanish verbs in both past tenses (surprise,surprise!), not too many in the imperfect, but the preterite does contain some of the most irregular conjugations of all the tenses, so be warned.

We will now take a look at each of these past tenses, explaining when they are used, regular formation for each of the verb groups and irregular verb variations.

The Imperfect Past Tense in Spanish

The imperfect tense is used to refer to actions in the past that occurred repeatedly such as,

• I used to walk home every day – Caminaba cada día

It is also used to refer to actions in the past that happened over an extended period.

• I used to eat paella frequently – Comía frecuentemente paella

And for “setting the stage” for a past event.

• We were coming home when we saw Juan – Veníamos para casa cuando vimos a Juan

Non physical actions such as feelings and thoughts will also usually use the imperfect tense,

• Juan was feeling sick – Juan estaba enfermo

In Spanish there are two sets of regular verb endings for the imperfect tense, one is used for verbs ending in -ar and the other for verbs ending in -er and -ir, these endings rarely change even when used with irregular verbs and are as follows;

Enviar (to send)

• yo envi -aba (I was sending)
• tú envi -abas (you were sending)
• el/ella envi -aba (he/she was sending)
• nosotros envi -ábamos (we were sending)
• vosotros envi -abais (you were sending)
• ellos/ellas envi -aban (they were sending)

Tener (to have)

• yo ten -ía (I was having)
• tú ten -ías (you were having)
• el/ella ten -ía (he/she was having)
• nosotros ten -íamos (we were having)
• vosotros ten -íais (you were having)
• ellos/ellas ten -ían (they were having)

Decir (to say)

• yo dec -ía (I was saying)
• tú dec -ías (you were saying)
• el/ella dec -ía (he/she was saying)
• nosotros dec -íamos (we were saying)
• vosotros dec -íais (you were saying)
• ellos/ellas dec -ían (they were saying)

There are two exceptions to the regular pattern of the imperfect tense and they are the important verbs ‘ser‘ (to be) and ‘ir‘ (to go) which will both need to be thoroughly studied and they are conjugated as shown below;

Ser (to be)

• yo er -a (I was)
• tú er -as (you were)
• el/ella er -a (he/she was )
• nosotros ér -amos (we were)
• vosotros er -ais (you were)
• ellos/ellas er -an (they were)

Ir (to go)

• yo ib -a (I was going)
• tú ib -as (you were going)
• el/ella ib -a (he/she was going)
• nosotros íb -amos (we were going)
• vosotros ib -ais (you were going)
• ellos/ellas ib -an (they were going)

The Preterite Past Tense in Spanish

The preterite tense is used frequently and is used to describe past actions that are seen to be completed. As with the Imperfect tense the stem of the verb is used with the tense endings and, as with the imperfect, there are two sets of endings, one for -ar verbs and the other for -ir and -er verbs.

Enviar (to send)

• yo envi -é (I sent)
• tú envi -aste (you sent)
• el/ella envi -ó (he/she sent)
• nosotros envi -amos (we sent)
• vosotros envi -asteis (you sent)
• ellos/ellas envi -aron (they sent)

Coger (to take)

• yo cog -í (I took)
• tú cog -iste (you took)
• el/ella cog -ió (he/she took)
• nosotros cog -imos (we took)
• vosotros cog -isteis (you took)
• ellos/ellas cog -ieron (they took)

Salir (to leave)

• yo sal -í (I left)
• tú sal -iste (you left)
• el/ella sal -ió (he/she left)
• nosotros sal -imos (we left)
• vosotros sal -isteis (you left)
• ellos/ellas sal -ieron (they left)

Unlike the imperfect tense there are a number of verbs that have irregularities in the formation of the preterite tense and to list them all along with their many differences would be too big a job for this article.

The most commonly used irregular past tense verbs in the preterite tense are;

• estar (to be),
• dar (to give),
• haber (to have),
• tener (to have),
• poner (to put),
• hacer (to do,make),
• poder (to be able to, can),
• querer (to want),
• ser (to be),
• decir (to say)
• ir (to go)

All of which are very different and will each need learning individually unfortunately!

If you need help with learning Spanish verb conjugation then you should use the Verbarrator. Read my honest and personal Verbarrator Review before you go any further.

For another  interesting post read my previous post on how to Conjugate Spanish Verbs

How to Conjugate Spanish Verbs

It is important to fully understand exactly what a verb is and what it used for before moving on to learning how to conjugate Spanish verbs, so here is a brief explanation for those who require some clarity.

Verbs are probably the most important part of any sentence as they describe either an action, a state or an occurrence.

• Most commonly used as an action word, a verb will describe something that is being done, for example, I sing or they talk.
• Here are a couple of examples when a verb is used to express a state of being: My name is David, I am English.
• Finally, an occurrence or something that is happening: The rain bounced off the ground or the snow glistened.

So now we have covered, in the most basic of explanations, what a verb is we should turn our attention to understanding exactly what is meant by conjugation.

What is Conjugation?

Conjugation is when a verb changes its form to indicate when and by whom an action is undertaken. In English, verb conjugation is not as severe as in other languages, namely Spanish, and verb conjugation is not as much of an issue. There are exceptions, of course, like the verb ‘to be’; I am, you are, he is etc. but verbs are generally much easier to learn in English.

In Spanish, verbs have many different conjugations and each one indicates who performs the action and the tense (when it was performed!) and we will now take a look at how the simplest groups of verbs are conjugated.

Spanish Regular Verbs

In Spanish, the infinitive of a verb is a single word unlike in English where it is composed of two; the infinitive ‘to have‘ is ‘tener’ in Spanish.

However, the Spanish verb does break down into two parts called the stem and the ending. Let me explain. There are three groups of verbs in Spanish, these groups are called the ar,er and ir verb groups, they are so called because every Spanish verb ends in either ar, er or ir. These endings are preceded by, what is known as, the stem, which is basically the verb with the ending being the equivalent of the English ‘to‘.

In the majority of tenses, the ending is replaced, and the new ending will indicate who is performing an action and when it happens; these changes to the verb are collectively called conjugation.

Spanish has a high number of irregular verbs that are hard to learn because they have very difficult conjugations, often changing, not only the endings but, the stem as well. In order to to give yourself the best chance of learning these irregular verbs it is vitally important to know basic conjugation as used when working with regular verbs.

Here is an example of a regular verb from each of the three verb groups as conjugated in the present tense.

Bailar (to dance) a regular -ar verb

Singular

• bail-o I dance
• bail-as you dance
• bail-a he, she dances
• bail-a you dance (polite)

Plural

• bail-amos we dance
• bail-áis you dance
• bail-an they dance
• bail-an you dance (polite)

Vivir (to live) a regular -ir verb

Singular

• viv-o I live
• viv-es you live
• viv-e he, she lives
• viv-e you live (polite)

Plural

• viv-imos we live
• viv-ís you live
• viv-en they live
• viv-en you live (polite)

Comer (to eat) a regular -er verb

Singular

• com-o I eat
• com-es you eat
• com-e he, she eats
• com-e you eat (polite)

Plural

• com-emos we eat
• com-éis you eat
• com-en they eat
• com-en you eat (polite)

There are a number of similarities that you will notice here.

• Firstly, all first person singular conjugations end with ‘o’, irrespective of which verb group.
• Secondly, er and ir verb groups have the same endings apart from the 1st and 2nd person plural, we and you. This similarity between the ir and er verbs is consistent through many of the different tenses and does make conjugating them a little easier!

Unfortunately, the explanation above is just the first step down the road of mastering Spanish verb conjugation, there are many more tenses that need to be learnt and there are also, as mentioned, many irregular verbs too but the above is the foundation on which your verb studies will be based.

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If you are a little more advanced in your studies why not have a read of my previous post that covers the Spanish Past Tense. If you are finding mastering verbs and verb conjugation too difficult or would like help learning them then check out my Verbarrator Review. It’s a fantastic learning tool for quickly getting to grips with Spanish verbs and it is the only Spanish software program that I still use frequently!

Spanish Past Tense

The Spanish past tense throws up a problem for many students and that is whether they should use the imperfect or preterite?

In Spanish, the two simple past tenses that are predominantly used, are called the Imperfect and the Preterite and it is perfectly understandable for students, who are learning about past tenses for the first time, to be unsure as to which of these two tenses to use and when.

It goes without saying that both tenses are used to describe past actions or states but each is used differently and the following rules will hopefully clear up any confusion.

When to Use the Preterite

The preterite tense is used to express an action that was completed at some time in the past, listed here are some specific uses and examples:

• When referring to a series of actions in the past:
  • Me desayuné, limpié la casa y me fui a la estación – I had breakfast, cleaned the house, and went to the station.

• When referring to the beginning or the end of a past event:
  • La fiesta empezó a las diez – The party began at 10:00

• When referring to things that are seen as being complete:
  • Dejó el trabajo hace un año – You left the job a year ago

When to Use the Imperfect
The imperfect tense expresses an action or state  that was ongoing during the past and if it is uncertain whether it has been completed. Specific uses and examples are listed below:

• To explain an action that a person did in the past habitually:
  • Cuando estábamos en el colegio, jugábamos al fútbol todos los jueves. – When we were at school, we used to play football every Thursday

• To refer to an action without making reference to an end or a beginning:
  • Mi mujer tenía dolores de cabeza frecuentes – My wife had frequent headaches

• When referring to actions that were taking place simultaneously in the past:
  • Mi hijo miraba televisión y mi hija cantaba – My son was watching television and my daughter was singing

• When describing physical, emotional or mental states or conditions:
  • Estaba tan feliz que quería llorar – I was so happy that I wanted to cry

• When referring to a past time:
  • Eran las ocho y media de la tarde – It was 8:30 p.m.
  • Era la una de la mañana – It was 1:00 a.m.

• When describing an action or state that happened at some point in the past and that lasted for a certain amount of time and that happened prior to another past action.
  • Hacía todo el día que esperando cuando mi mujer llegó – I had been waiting all day when my when arrived

Hopefully, these guidelines will provide the clarity you need.

Why not check out my previous post about the benefits of an online conjugator Spanish verb trainer or if you would rather read about a spanish verb conjugator that will help you to learn Spanish verb conjugation better and quicker than any other method check out my Verbarrator Review

Online Conjugator Spanish - The Verbarrator

The Spanish online conjugator is, undeniably, one of the most effective learning tools currently available that is capable of helping students learn Spanish quickly, in particular, the conjugation of Spanish verbs, which is so often the stumbling block for many of them.

For years linguists have been trying new methods and techniques that would aid in the learning of Spanish. Everything from image association and various other memorization techniques to subconscious study (listening to Spanish whilst sleeping!).

Some of these techniques were effective, whilst others were…well let’s just say, a little gimmicky! Many of the effective methods are still used today but they only really improved how Spanish was learnt and not the time taken to do so.

Also, the effective learning techniques were better suited for nouns, adjective and verb infinitives and not for learning the conjugation of verbs (I am referring to image association, by the way!).

Why an online conjugator, Spanish verb practice tool so effective?

Spanish verb conjugation is notoriously difficult to master and, because of this, it is one of the most time consuming areas of Spanish study.

The traditional method of learning Spanish verb conjugations has always been to use a verb conjugation book and recite, recite and recite some more until the necessary information had been completely memorized…hence why it took so long to learn conjugation.

However, the online conjugator has helped substantially and although the earliest offerings were basically online verb conjugation books, that did little, if anything at all, to improve the situation, the most recent additions have completely transformed how Spanish verbs are studied, specifically the ‘Verbarrator’.

Learning verb conjugation has always been tedious and time consuming, some have said it is like riding a bicycle with flat tyres up a hill, sure you’ll get there in the end but boy it’s hard work, and it is for this reason that so many people give up on learning Spanish beyond being able to order a coffee.

Now…imagine what it would be like if you actually started enjoying the study of verb conjugation and mastered them much quicker than you could have ever imagined!

This is what the current crop of online conjugators offer and why they are an invaluable Spanish verb practice and training tool for anyone serious about learning Spanish well and quickly.

For more information about the ‘Verbarrator’ verb conjugation software check out my review of it by clicking Verbarrator Review. If that doesn’t tickle your fancy, why not check out my previous post on how to
Conjugate Ser in the preterite tense, it’s concise and very helpful!

How to Conjugate Ser in the Preterite Tense

Learning how to conjugate ser in the preterite tense can be a little confusing for students for two reasons. And they are that -

• the preterite conjugation of ser is highly irregular
• it shares the exact same conjugation as the Spanish verb ir, meaning ‘to go’.

The first reason shouldn’t come as a surprise to most students who have encountered ser when studying conjugations in other tenses as it is one of the most irregular verbs in Spanish, but the degree of irregularity in the preterite still surprises most of them.

The second reason is generally the most confusing aspect of ser in the preterite as the question that is often asked is whether it means ‘was’ or ‘went’?. Once explained however, the confusion is short lived. Although, before you are enlightened further, with the use of some examples, we should look at how ser in conjugated in the preterite first of all!

The Preterite Form of Ser (…and Ir!)

• fui - I was
• fuiste - you was
• fue - he was
• fuimos - we were
• fuisteis - you were
• fueron - they were

Now that you have been shown the conjugation above that is used for both ser and ir, I should perhaps explain how you can tell whether it is ‘was’ or ‘went’ that is being used.

All you need do is simply listen to, or read, the context in which the verb is being used!

For example:

• Ella fue una mal mujer – which means, she was a bad woman.
• Ella fue al mercado which means, she went to the market

As you can see both sentences begin with the same conjugation but the context defines which verb is being used. I mean, it would make no sense what so ever to say ’she went a bad woman’ or ’she was to the market’ now…would it?

If you would like a little more of an insight into how to conjugate in the Spanish preterite tense or better still, check out my review of a training tool that will help you master Spanish verbs QUICKLY, in all tenses, including the preterite, by reading my Verbarrator Review.